Edible Lazio: Sagre this week-end

I spent the morning, as I always do on Saturdays, with my husband. Enjoying a coffee and cornetto, reading the paper, driving around to different towns in northern Lazio to run errands...and just for the pleasure of it. Fiano Romano, pictured above, is one of my favorites.
I also spent a bit of time tweeting about the different sagre (food fests) going on in the fabulous Lazio region this weekend.
The tomato is the star of most sagre as in one way or another it usually appears in the signature dishes each town is showcasing over the weekend.



The essential element of the sagra is that it features the town's tastiest, locally produced, in season food or beverage. In other words it's all about sustainability. Many of these sagre have been going on for decades and are a time for the town to celebrate with music and dancing and other activities. The main event, however, is the food and everyone gathers in the town square to enjoy a feast.
I love snails, both the sea and field variety, and happily a few sagre feature them this weekend.

• Monte Rotondo's Ciummacata (field snails) will be prepared with tomato sauce and peperoncino.
  

• Valmontone is celebrating its 31st field snail sagra.

Some of the other sagre happening in the Lazio region this weekend:

• Rocca Priora is hosting its first ever clam sagra, and will also prepare fried moscardini.

• Sipicciano's 6th sagra features something sweet: the bombolone casareccio, fried and filled with cream, jam, nutella and white chocolate.

• On this hot weekend head to the hill town of Montelibretti for the town's wine fest featuring wines from local grotte antiche (antique wine caves).

• Nerola offers up pappardelle al ragu' di cinghiale (wild boar sauce) as part of their sagra of homemade pasta and game.

• Faleria hosts its second summer tartufo fest today and tomorrow.

• Valcanneto's arrosticino (skewered lamb) sagra will also be its second ever.

• Pizze fritte for the 28th sagra della frittella in the Laziale town, Terrignano, today and tomorrow.

• Ardea will feature spaghetti cacio e pepe, served at the town's Sforza castle.

• Lazio's abundant sagre are not just ebible fests: check out the infiorata artistica (flower display) in charming Poggio Moiano.

If you'd like to keep up to date on the various sagre going on throughout the year in Lazio there are a few websites you can look at: http://www.sagreinitalia.it/sagre-in-lazio.asp or http://www.laziofeste.it/